Ebola Virus Detected In Eye Of US Survivor

The Ebola virus has been detected in the eye of a US doctor who had already recovered from the illness.

According to the BBC, The
medic, who caught the bug while working in Sierra Leone, had blurred
eyesight and pain two months after being declared Ebola-free.

Scientists say his eye infection presents no risk to the public. But reporting in the New England Journal of Medicine they warn that research is needed to see if Ebola can also linger in other parts of the body.

Inflammatory reaction

Patients
with Ebola are generally discharged once tests show the virus is no
longer present in blood. At this point, experts say, it cannot be spread
to members of the general public.

But there have been
suggestions the virus may live on in some bodily fluids as certain parts
of the body could act as reservoirs.

Now a team, including
scientists from Emory University School of Medicine, say Ebola can
persist in the eye and lead to further damage.

Their 43-year-old patient recovered from a serious Ebola infection that needed weeks of intensive care.

But shortly after being discharged, he had a burning sensation in his eyes and suffered worsening blurry vision.

Tests showed the fluid in his left eye had live Ebola virus. And doctors say there was widespread inflammation which can lead to blindness.

But after three months of treatment with steroids and antiviral drugs, his vision began to improve.

Experts think the virus's staying power might be due to the eye's ability to tolerate certain pathogens once inside its walls.

They
suggest further studies are warranted to check for the the presence of
the virus in other "immune privileged" sites such as the central nervous
system, testicles and cartilage.

And doctors are calling for
more help for survivors in the worst-affected countries. Recovering
patients are reporting eye problems among other difficulties.

But eye specialists are in short supply in Sierra Leone, Guinea and Liberia. Dr Russell Van Gelder, of the American Academy of Ophthalmology,
said: "This remarkable case now demonstrates that the virus can remain
viable in ocular fluids long after the patient has recovered from the
systemic infection.

"If the Ebola epidemic continues,
ophthalmologists throughout the world will be seeing patients with
post-Ebola uveitis (inflammation), and will need to recognise and treat
this condition.

"However, I want to emphasise that as far as we know, the Ebola virus is not transmitted by casual contact.

"The
current study does not suggest that infection can be transmitted
through contact with tears of patients who have recovered from their
initial infection."